Discuss the latest comic book news and front page articles, read or post your own reviews of comics, and talk about anything comic book related. Threads from the two subforums below will also show up here. News Stand topics can also be read and posted in from The Asylum.

Stop! This is a special edition of the Review Group! Every new comic release (according to Diamond) can be reviewed in this week's thread. That includes titles over $4 like Amazing Spider-Man #700. Each review will count as 1 individual review. Ditto for any additional reviews. Sound good?

Review as often or as little as you like. Once you've posted 5 reviews, you will be awarded 1 pick. You can post 5 reviews, right? That's a totally achievable goal and with day and date digital releases becoming the standard, it shouldn't matter if your shop ordered enough copies of this weeks comic or not.

When multiple Review Groupers have posted 5 (or more) qualifying reviews, they will be awarded their pick in the order that they qualified. What constitutes a qualifying review? Any review posted (with a score on a scale from 0-10, that's right 0!) within 1 calendar month of the thread going live. Reviews are to be at least 5 sentences long. It shows that a) you have at least read this week's pick and b) you have some unique insight into the comic.

Reviews posted while waiting in line for your pick will be applied to your next pick.

I'll be keeping track of everyone's progress with the newly christened Spreadsheet of Fantastic (RIP, Spreadsheet of Doom) and reporting the results in the Current Members list in the weekly OP. When it's your turn to make a pick, I will PM you. If you do not respond to me by Midnight EST the following Sunday, you will lose your pick and I will start a poll to determine that week's selection.

Any week in which we do not have a Review Grouper with 5 qualifying picks, we will determine the week's comic via poll.

If it's your week to pick, remember to keep it under $3.99.

Naturally, this new system is new and it may be necessary to make changes as we go.

Next week's pick will be determined by a poll. Expect it by week's end.

Brian Wood. Ming Doyle. Jordie Bellaire. On paper, those names should inspire some confidence in whatever project the three of them should tackle. Mara #1 sets up an interesting world, but closes on a wobbly ending. Mara's universe is influenced by fears of endless war, an obscene fixation on sports and the power of fame. Wood throws some engaging ideas with the title character being the "it girl" of her world. The problem is that the road to the ending is boneheaded. Though it could be explained by the world of Mara's philosophy, it just comes off as a not-so-organic way to transition the series to a place that the creators behind it want. Doyle and Bellaire turn in some pretty art that gives Mara a unique, visual style that stands out in the market. Mara #1 isn't a bad comic; it's just an enjoyable one with a bad omen of an ending.

Before this issue dropped, the internet was in tizzy over the leaked spoilers pertaining to it. Since its release, Amazing Spider-Man #700 has received more positive feedback than bad. I tend to agree with the former, but the comic itself is far from perfect.

The main story covers the climax of Peter and Otto's confrontation. Judging from the context of previous issues, the basis for the conflict makes sense. Their attacks and counter-attacks to each other's moves are logically and the ending makes sense. However, that doesn't mean that I like the new status quo. Even if what I assume will happen in future Spider-Man tales comes to past, I still have a nagging feeling that it'll not be up to snuff. What really robs the wind from the comic's sails is that the new status quo won't last that long. A large, creative company like will usually choose corporate synergy to maximize profits over bold decisions in their comics' respective universe. It's an enjoyable tale, but one that's still lacking.

The highlight of the comic is the short story entitled "Spider-Dreams". JM DeMatteis and Giuseppe Camuncoli deliver a sweet tale involving an old Peter Parker and his younger relative. It's a wonderfully crafted story that's a more proper tale about closure and moving on to a new status quo than the main story with less pages to it.

The final tale is by Jen Van DeMeter and Stephanie Buscema and it feels out of place in this comic. The first two stories revolved endings and this just involved Spider-Man and the Black Cat. It's cute, but nothing really to write about.

As a whole, Amazing Spider-Man #700 isn't a crappy comic, but it isn't a great one. If it wasn't for "Spider-Dreams", it'd receive a much lower score. Even with the quality of that one story, there's no way that this is worth $8. Buy Zaucer of Zilk #1-#2 instead. It's packed with more imagination and quality than this latest "important" tale that Marvel has brought into the world.